Mass. drug trafficker on the lam found working at Georgia call center

On Wednesday, U.S. Marshals in Georgia arrested a man who went under the radar after he stopped showing up right in the middle of his cocaine trafficking trial last year.

Believing that he might be able to avoid a conviction by just not showing up to Hampden Superior Court, 27-year-old Corey Mitchell-Edwards was convicted in absentia by a jury in April 2015.

Although the man faced a mandatory sentence of 12 years behind bars, he could not be sentenced because he was not present. Thus, he ultimately left town.

Dave Milne, U.S. Deputy Marshal, said: “That’s why he ran.” Milne noted that the capture ended as a result of a year-long investigation conducted by the state and the Massachusetts State Police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section.

Marshals arrested Mitchell-Edward, who also goes by the name “Money,” around 10 a.m in Duluth, Georgia.

Milne said, “I don’t think he expected to meet U.S. Marshals went he went to work this morning.”

He continued, “They caught him totally off guard. He hadn’t even had his morning coffee yet.”

The fugitive had been employed at a call center for an energy company in Atlanta. U.S. Marshals were unsure of where the man was living, or if he was using an alternate identity while he was on the run.

According to MassLive.com, Mitchell-Edwards stopped using social media and cut all local ties. The investigation took place in multiple states until he was found in Georgia.

Mitchell-Edwards and a number of other individuals were allegedly working from an apartment in Westfield, which belonged to an older man who was addicted to heroin, for what prosecutors referred to as a “one-stop drug store.”

When the apartment was raided in 2014, authorities discovered a marijuana grow operation, heroin, and 200 grams of cocaine.

The owner of the apartment, Robert Lemanski, informed officers that the weed and the heroine were his, but the cocaine belonged to Mitchell-Edwards.

He furthered noted that the individuals used his apartment to sell drugs and then compensated him with drugs in return.

Milne reported that Mitchell-Edwards will likely be sent back to Massachusetts within the next two weeks. It has also been indicated that he will likely face additional charges for bail jumping, but that the decision is ultimately up to the state.